Lactic acidosis due to voluntary e-liquid ingestion

Severe neurological nicotine intoxication by e-cigarette liquids: Systematic literature review

Electronic cigarettes are a popular, easily purchased, alternative source of nicotine that is considered safer than conventional tobacco. However, Intentional or accidental exposure to e-liquid substances, mainly nicotine, can lead to serious, potentially fatal toxicity. Emergency and critical care physicians should keep in mind acute intoxication of this poison with a biphasic toxic syndrome. We highlight its potentially fatal outcome and suggest monitoring the adverse effects of nicotine according to a multimodal protocol integrating somatosensory evoked potentials, electroencephalography and neuroimaging data with anamnestic report and toxicological and laboratory data.

A Systematic Literature Review of E-Cigarette-Related Illness and Injury: Not Just for the Respirologist

Following the recent electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) illness outbreak, the current review aimed to collect all related clinical cases for study and analysis and provide a critical synopsis of the proposed injury mechanism. Adhering to PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis) guidelines, e-cigarette-related clinical cases were identified via Google Scholar and PubMed databases. Additionally, references of published case reports and previous review papers were manually searched, revealing 159 publications presenting e-cigarette-related case reports and 19 reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 238 individual cases were identified; 53% traumatic injuries due to e-cigarette explosion or self-combustion, 24% respiratory cases, and 12% poisonings. Additional cases pertained to oral, cardiovascular, immunologic, hematologic, allergic reactions, infant complications, and altered medication levels. Case reports were mainly published between 2016-2019 (78%). The oldest case, a lipoid pneumonia, was published in 2012. The current review showed that e-cigarette-related health effects extend beyond the acute lung injury syndrome, including traumatic, thermal injuries and acute intoxications. Physicians should be aware of the distinct clinical presentations and be trained to respond and treat effectively. Regulators and public health authorities should address the regulatory gap regarding electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and novel tobacco products.

Nicotine intoxication by e-cigarette liquids: a study of case reports and pathophysiology

Background: Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), the smokeless alternative to conventional tobacco cigarettes, have become increasingly popular. E-cigarettes vaporise e-liquid, a solution of highly concentrated nicotine, propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerine (VG). With the popularity of e-cigarettes, e-liquid refills have become easily accessible and several cases of intoxication due to the ingestion of e-liquid have been reported. We provide an overview of these cases, their pathophysiology and patients' characteristics.Methods: We carried out a retrospective evaluation of the scientific literature reporting on cases of liquid nicotine intoxication, using the following inclusion criteria: (1) the article is or contains a case report, (2) describes an intoxication with e-liquid, (3) the substance contains nicotine, and (4) intake is oral, intravenous or subcutaneous.Results: We found 26 case reports describing a total of 31 patients who suffered from e-liquid intoxication. All intoxications up to the age of six were reported as unintentional, whereas nearly all cases from ages 13 to 53 were due to suicide attempts. The three most prevalent symptoms of e-liquid intoxication were tachycardia, altered mental status and vomiting. Eleven cases resulted in the death of the patient. In the survivors, the highest plasma concentration of nicotine was 800 µg L^-1, while the lowest concentration in the non-survivors was 1600 µg L^-1.Conclusions: There is a mismatch between the generally accepted lethal oral nicotine dose of 60 mg, resulting in approximately 180 µg L^-1 plasma concentration, and the 4.4- to 8.9-fold higher lethal plasma concentrations we found in cases of e-liquid intoxication. In these severe intoxications, plasma cotinine concentration does not act as a more reliable indicator of nicotine intoxication than nicotine itself. The ages of the patients display a bimodal distribution. In patients above the age of 10, intoxication results mainly from suicide attempts rather than accidental ingestion. The role of PG and VG in e-liquid intoxications is remarkably unclear. However, the similarity across nicotine and PG toxicity symptoms leads us to believe a cumulative effect cannot be excluded.